Matt Leinart

Carson Palmer might be retired. Matt Leinart might be reborn. On Tuesday, the first full day under the NFL's new collective bargaining agreement, the two Heisman Trophy-winning quarterbacks from USC took widely divergent paths. The Cincinnati Bengals say Palmer has retired — although Palmer himself has yet to talk about it publicly. And Leinart, the No. 10 pick in 2006 who bounced from Arizona to Houston but hasn't gotten traction on his career, agreed to terms with Seattle, where he will be reunited with former Trojans coach Pete Carroll.

Kudos to Matt Leinart for placing happiness above money. He is a rare bird indeed and a breath of fresh air in an otherwise rancid sports world filled with greedy egomaniacs. Mark S. Roth Los Angeles It looks like the 49ers are out of luck. First Pete Carroll snubs them, now Leinart. But for the 49ers there is a silver lining -- they're looking really good for the first pick in '06 too. Scott Hofman Atwater Village John David Booty must be so excited to hear that Matt Leinart is coming back.

Matt Leinart is "looking good"? [July 1] Let's see, he didn't marry the mother of his 8-month-old son and lives in another state, but "regularly returns to Southern California to spend time with his son." I hope that doesn't cut into the important things in life like hanging out with his teammates at the lake across from his house and playing video games with beautiful actresses like Stacy Keibler. Quite a role model.

After watching Matt Leinart spin his way in for the winning touchdown against Notre Dame, you would think his ballroom dance instructor was the assistant offensive coordinator. WALT KUNIMOTO Montebello I enjoyed hearing Notre Dame fans complain about Matt Leinart being pushed into the end zone on the winning touchdown. Except that it happens all the time, hasn't been called in 40 years and Notre Dame did it three times on quarterback sneaks earlier in the game, it was a valid complaint.

Mater Dei quarterback Matt Leinart, who threw for an Orange County-best 2,847 yards and 27 touchdowns, has been selected the California high school football player of the year by Gatorade. Leinart, who has committed to USC but is taking trips to Oklahoma and Georgia Tech, said the honor came as a shock. "I didn't really expect any awards or anything," he said. "There's so many great football players in California, I didn't expect to be named the top one. That's pretty cool."

Erica Lucero, a USC sophomore from Upland, is doing periodic updates on Trojan football for Page 2 of ESPN.com. Of course, quarterback Matt Leinart is a focal point. According to Lucero, there are certain rules that pertain to what she calls the "Big Man on Campus." One rule is that he is never referred to as simply Matt or Leinart. It is always Matt Leinart. Another rule is that no incident involving Matt Leinart, however insignificant, should go unreported.

I have always understood that USC is a very expensive university. However, when I heard Matt Leinart coughed up $15 million to $25 million for two units of ballroom dancing, it put it into another perspective. JULIAN DEVEROUX Hermosa Beach Last year at this time, everyone was lauding the decision by Matt Leinart to stay in school and further enjoy the college experience. Now, the media are trashing Leinart for not coming out because it cost him $10 million. Leinart made clear how much he enjoyed USC and this set an example not usually seen by young men playing sports.